There are no federally sponsored or funded research or development projects or undertakings in any way associated with the instant invention.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a protective garment for protecting body parts against cuts and puncture wounds caused by sharp objects such as, e.g., hypodermic needles, fishhooks, broken glass etc., where at least a portion of the garment comprises at least one inner layer, at least one protective layer and possibly one or more outer layers.
2. Background Information
People are exposed to cuts or puncture wounds in many different situations. For cleaning personnel the presence of used hypodermic syringes in public places as well as sharp objects in the rubbish are a common problem. Used syringes and broken glass are also used as a threat in situations where people are under attack, and therefore police, watchmen and other security personnel are exposed to injuries of this kind. Nor is it uncommon to find broken glass at the scene of an accident, and in such places the helpers are in danger of receiving cuts in connection with rescue work. Firemen are particularly exposed to such injury when they have to enter buildings where there is a fire, and where broken glass or other sharp objects may be lying on the ground.
Another situation where it is relevant to use protective clothing is in the field of medical and laboratory work, where sharp objects are employed while blood and other body fluids are also handled with the risk of infection this involves.
Other cases where there is a need for protective clothing are in the fishing industry, where sharp hooks represent a danger, and in the fish processing or meat production business, e.g. slaughterhouses.
The protective garments for use in said and similar such cases should fulfill several requirements. The garments should prevent sharp objects from penetrating them and reaching the skin, they should permit ease of movement when wearing the garments, they should be easy to wash and possibly disinfect, and in general they should be comfortable to use. The latter will lead to the advantage that the garments are always used when there is any risk of injury, and not only in special, highly exposed situations.
There are several known solutions for protective garments where the equipment comprises a protective layer, and in some of these solutions the use of metallic materials is involved. Some of these prior art solutions will be described in the following.
DE-Al-3.023.990 describes a protective glove which is manufactured by braiding or knitting of so-called special steel wire. In a preferred embodiment, the glove is knitted from a steel wire which is enveloped by a textile fiber. The publication also states, however, that the glove can be knitted from uncovered steel wire and subsequently provided with a skin-protecting layer on the inside and a wear layer on the outside. A disadvantage of this glove is that it will be unable to offer the combination of flexibility of use and satisfactory protection against puncture wounds. It is stated that the glove should be made of metal wire in all its parts, both round the fingers, in the palm, and on the back of the hand. If flexibility and mobility are to be achieved with such a glove, it has to be manufactured in large mesh sizes, thus reducing the glove""s protective power, especially against penetration of sharp objects.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,231,700 discloses a glove designed to protect medical personnel against cuts and against penetration of hypodermic needles. The glove is woven in its entirety from a yarn which preferably consists of an elastic core of, e.g. Lycra, round which is wound an outer material with great tensile strength such as, e.g. Kevlar. The publication describes the possibility of using metal composites as an additional component in the outer material but this is not recommended on account of reduced sensitivity and mobility. Those portions of the glove which in addition to protecting against cuts and tears are also meant to be resistant to puncture wounds, e.g. from syringes, are further covered with a puncture-impeding layer, which is preferably made of leather. This glove does indeed offer satisfactory protection to medical personnel when dealing with syringes, bone fragments and the like, but is not sufficiently robust to offer adequate protection under critical circumstances such as, e.g. situations involving an attack or handling broken glass. Reinforcing the glove by addition of metal to the material from which the whole glove is made would again result in reduced flexibility and usefulness, as mentioned in the publication.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,004,295 describes a glove which is particularly useful for work in the meat production industry. This is achieved by having the glove made of nonmetallic fiber yarn, preferably Kevlar, reinforced with metallic fiber wires. This design offers good protection against cuts, e.g. from knives, but not against penetration of sharp objects.
DE-3.805.671 discloses a working glove, suitable for deburring metal parts. The glove is made of steel wire with a diameter between 0.2 mm and 0.8 mm, with a mesh between 1 mm 4 mm. It is internally equipped with an inner glove of leather or fabric. This glove is well suited for its application, but unsuitable for protection against penetration of sharp objects, due to the large mesh. Any reduction in the mesh in order to make this glove puncture-proof would make it rigid and immobile, and unsuitable for use.
A protective glove with built-in metal parts is also described in DE-A-4.341.039. The problem of mobility is solved here by the glove comprising several loose metallic parts which together cover the finger""s inner surface and which slide over one another when the finger is moved. However, each metallic part is rigid and the mobility is restricted for this reason.
In all the known solutions, mobility and comfort have to be sacrificed for the sake of attaining sufficient protection.
The object of the invention to provide an improved protective garment where the main drawbacks of the previously known solutions are avoided.
The object is achieved according to the invention with a protective garment of the type mentioned at the beginning, characterized in that at least one protective layer consists of a wire mesh which is composed of metal wires, where the thickness of the metal wire is between 0.03 mm and 0.2 mm and the apertures in the wire mesh are between 0.05 mm and 0.45 mm.
In the preferred embodiment of the invention the wire mesh is woven from metal wires consisting of non-corrosive, stainless steel.
Further advantages are achieved in embodiments as set forth in the claims.
The invention has the surprising effect that it provides good protection with very small dimensions in the wire mesh. This leads both to material savings and to the achievement of substantial mobility when using the protective garment. At the same time the small aperture in the wire mesh prevents thin, sharp objects from penetrating the protective layer. A particularly high degree of protection, with a further reduction in the ability of sharp objects to penetrate the glove, is achieved by using several protective layers of wire mesh.
When used, e.g., in the medical field, it is important that the fine motor mechanism, i.e. the ability to handle small objects and perform small precise movements, should remain unaltered when using protective garments. For this application an especially thin wire mesh should be used.
In a specially preferred embodiment of the invention the protective garment constitutes a glove. The glove consists of an inner layer which is comfortable against the skin (preferably of cotton), one or more protective layers, each consisting of wire mesh, and an outer layer which also provides a certain degree of protection, and which preferably consists of leather. In order to improve mobility while also making the glove lighter, only a few areas of the glove comprise the protective layer of wire mesh. The protective layers cover the palm of the hand and the inner surfaces of the fingers, while the rest of the hand is free from protective layers. The fastening of the various layers to one another is crucial with regard to the glove""s flexibility, and in a preferred embodiment the inner layer and the protective layers are joined together by gluing, and the outer layer is sewn together with the inner layer along the glove""s natural outer seams or only in the area around the finger tips and/or the wrist. In order to reinforce the glove""s protective properties, a greater number of protective layers may be employed in the palm area than in the area covering the inner surfaces of the fingers.
It is also possible to sew or laminate the layers together, or the protective layers may be loosely arranged between the inner and outer layers.
The protective garment according to the invention may be provided in the form of a removable article of clothing for placing directly on the body or on the outside of ordinary clothes. The article consists an inner layer in a soft and comfortable material (e.g. cotton), a number of protective layers consisting of wire mesh and preferably an outer layer in a soft material (e.g. cotton) if the article is intended for use under the clothes as an insert, or possibly of a more hard-wearing material (e.g. leather) if the article is to be used externally. The article is provided with Velcro or other fastening mechanisms which permit swift and easy fastening to the clothes or round the body or a body part.
Where the protective garment according to the invention is a waistcoat or jacket, in a special embodiment it has been found advantageous, but not necessary, to omit fastening the protective layer to the other layers, and instead let it be provided as an insertion between the inner and outer layer.
The protective garment according to the invention, especially in the case of a waistcoat or jacket, may also contain a number of layers of TWARON, KEVLAR or other special material employed in the manufacture of bullet-proof garments. In this case, the garment will not only be bullet-proof, but also resistant to hypodermic needles and other sharp objects.
Hunting wear and motorcycle suits may also be made in the form of protective garments according to the invention. The wire mesh""s flexibility and not least its ductility will make the garment highly suited to this use.
The invention will now be described by means of the attached drawings in which: